I am having wonderful luck growing Swiss Chard in the straw bales. We are cutting every other day and the centers continue to grow. Chard tastes like spinach. It can be eaten raw when the leaves are two to three inches. I like to harvest it like my grandmother did - cut off outer leaves once they reach six-to-eight inches. Put a pot of water on the stove to boil. Dice the stems and set aside. Chop the leaves into one-inch strips. Boil the stems for two minutes, then add the leaves and boil just until wilted, about one minute more. Drain and serve with a splash of olive oil and vinegar of your choice. MMM! Now that takes me back to Grandma's house!

The squash plants begin flowering with the male flowers and I am blessed with an abundance of pollinators, eliminating the need to hand pollinate. The female flowers opened a week later and so far all the fruits have set. I can't wait to taste my homegrown squash!